Everything you need to know about the Iran protests

Clashes overnight between protesters and security forces in Iran killed nine people, state television reported Tuesday, including some rioters who tried to storm a police station to steal weapons. (Jan. 2)
AP

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, center, greets heads of parliament commissions after their meeting in Tehran, Iran, on Jan. 1.(Photo: EPA)

Iran has been rocked by its most significant anti-government protests since a disputed presidential election in 2009. Six days of unrest across the country have resulted in more than 20 deaths and hundreds of arrests.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused the country's enemies of meddling in recent protest rallies. Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, called Tuesday for an emergency U.N. meeting to discuss the crisis.

Here's what the protests are all about:

It's the economy, stupid?

The unrest started Thursday as a protest over Iran's beleaguered economy. Unemployment is high at 12% and the costs of basic necessities such as dairy products have been spiraling. The protests have since widened to a more general expression of anger over alleged government corruption and discontent with Iran's clerical rulers. There have been calls for Khamenei, the supreme leader, to step aside.

Where are the protests taking place?

The protests kicked off in the northeast city of Mashad when people took to the streets to convey their disappointment over President Hassan Rouhani's failure to deliver on promised economic prosperity after a nuclear deal with world powers. As news of the protests spread on social media through Telegram and WhatsApp — widely used in Iran — protests erupted in other cities, including Isfahan and the capital Tehran.

How has the government responded?

Security services have used force and tear gas to disperse crowds. At least 21 people have died and 450 have been arrested nationwide, according to Iranian media. Tehran’s Revolutionary Court warned Tuesday that arrested protesters could potentially face the death penalty when they come to trial. Authorities have also tried to slow, and in some cases, block access to the Internet and ban some international calls. At the same time, Rouhani struck a conciliatory tone and said protesters have a right to be heard as long as they do so "according to the constitution."

Without naming a specific country or organization, Khamenei accused Iran’s enemies on Tuesday of meddling in the recent protest rallies.

How has the White House reacted?

Since the protests started President Trump has taken to Twitter on multiple occasions to let Iran's government know that he is watching closely. He has also expressed solidarity with the protesters and their poor economic prospects. Yet Trump also tried to characterize the protests as a direct result of Iran's foreign policy in the Middle East. "The people are finally getting wise as to how their money and wealth is being stolen and squandered on terrorism," he said in one tweet. On Tuesday, the administration called on Iran to stop blocking Instagram and other social media sites and encouraged Iranians to use special software to circumvent controls, such as virtual private networks, known as VPNs, said Undersecretary of State Steve Goldstein.

What happens next?

Iran's security forces ultimately crushed the 2009 Green Movement, when millions marched in protest over the disputed re-election of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. So far, the current scale of the protests is much smaller, and it is not clear how much public dissent Iran's government is willing to tolerate.

Trump is considering imposing new sanctions on those responsible for the crackdown on protesters, presidential aide Kellyanne Conway said Tuesday. That comes as Trump faces a congressional deadline this month on whether to certify that Iran is meeting the terms of the 2015 nuclear accord with the U.S. and other nations.

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Iranians chant slogans as they march in support of the government near the Imam Khomeini grand mosque in the capital Tehran on Dec. 30, 2017. Tens of thousands of regime supporters marched in cities across Iran in a show of strength for the regime after two days of angry protests directed against the country's religious rulers.
Hamed Malekpour, AFP/Getty Images

People are affected by tear gas fired by anti-riot Iranian police to disperse demonstrators in a protest over Iran's weak economy, in Tehran, Iran on Dec. 30, 2017. A wave of spontaneous protests over Iran's weak economy swept into Tehran on Saturday, with college students and others chanting against the government just hours after hard-liners held their own rally in support of the Islamic Republic's clerical establishment.
AP

Iranian protesters chant slogans at a rally in Tehran, Iran on Dec. 30, 2017. Iranian hard-liners rallied Saturday to support the country's supreme leader and clerically overseen government as spontaneous protests sparked by anger over the country's ailing economy roiled major cities in the Islamic Republic.
Ebrahim Noroozi, AP

Iranian students clash with riot police during an anti-government protest around the University of Tehran, Iran on Dec. 30, 2017. Media reported that illegal protest against the government is going on in most of the cities in Iran. Protests were held in at least nine cities, including Tehran, against the economic and foreign policy of President Hassan Rouhani's government.
EPA-EFE

Iranians hold portraits of Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and chant slogans as they take part in a rally to support the government and regime, outside of the Imam Khomeini grand mosque in Tehran, Iran on Dec. 30, 2017. Hundreds of regime supporters marched in Tehran and cities across Iran to show their supports for the regime following two days of angry and illegal protests against the government.
Hamed Malekpour, EPA-EFE